John 20:23
'If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained' — this authority (aphiēmi, to forgive/release; katechō, to retain/hold) is communal, not individual priestly prerogative. The connection to Spirit-reception suggests that forgiveness flows from the Spirit's work of judging the world (16:8–11). The duality (forgive/retain) emphasizes both the power and responsibility of the Spirit-empowered community to extend or withhold reconciliation.